Where wine meets design

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Modern and bold — two words to describe Cade winery, the new PlumpJack property and Napa Valley’s first LEED gold-certified, solar-powered winery.

Located 4.5 miles from Route 29 — Napa Country’s main drag of wineries and tasting rooms — Cade could not stand out more from its neighbors. Perched on a dramatic hillside of manzanita trees on Howell Mountain, the winery overlooks the Napa Valley for tens of miles — and enjoys a slightly cooler climate due to its elevation.

Designed by Juan Carlos Fernandez, 37, a Mexican-born architect part of Lail Design Group, Cade is elegant and unexpected.

Encompassing a 14,500-square-foot network of wine caves built into the hillside in a shape that replicates the PlumpJack shield, Cade — a name derived from a Shakespearean-era term for an oak cask or barrel — sits on approximately 60 hilltop acres — 20 of which were planted as vineyards in 2003. Of the remaining property, 28 acres are protected to ensure they will always remain open space.

Most recently, Cade became the first gold LEED-certified winery in California (It didn’t receive the U.S. Green Building Council’s top honor — platinum certification in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design — mainly because there isn’t a network of public transportation connecting the winery to the rest of the community).

With an emphasis on environmentally-sensitive design, Cade utilizes solar power, organic farming methods and other “green” elements in both wine production and daily operations.

A visit to CADEWhen you schedule a visit ($20 a person), you will be invited to sit and sip at the hospitality building’s outdoor patio, which features an infinity-edge fountain that overlooks the bucolic valley. If it is too hot or sunny, you can relax inside the hospitality building’s living room, an open space with a large coffee table, sofas and white Barcelona chairs. Adjacent to the living room is an elegant dining area — with a dramatic manzanita chandelier — which is available for private events.

Cade’s production is under the direction of award-winning winemaker Anthony Biagi, known for his critically acclaimed estate cabernets as the winemaker for PlumpJack Winery. Biagi has plans for an overall production of 12,500 cases over the next 10 years.

In addition to wine, it is well worth your time to schedule a tour of the winemaking facility, which features two buildings and a barrel storage cave.

If you go

Howell Mountain, Angwin, Cade Winery and Tasting Room

Bargain

Tasting tour of Cade Winery$20 to $30 a person

Tastings and tours at Cade Winery are open to the public by appointment; tastings from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. seven days a week at a cost of $20 per person. Private tours followed by a food and wine pairing are available at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. daily at a cost of $30 a person. For more information, visit www.cadewinery.com.

Splurge

Spending a night near CadeStarting at $575 a night

Meadowood Napa Resort — which recently ranked ninth among the top 50 resorts in the U.S. and Canada by Travel + Leisure Magazine — is a memorable experience and in close proximity to Cade winery. The resort — which features 85 cottages, suites and lodges — is settled into the forested hillside of the Napa Valley. It is also home to a two-Michelin starred restaurant, a professional croquet lawn, tennis center, three pools, a spa and miles of hiking trails. For more information, visit www.meadowood.com.

Life by Numbers

Acres on which Cade winery is located on Howell Mountain in the Napa Valley60

Miles from San Francisco to Cade Winery74

Square-feet that make up the network of wine caves at Cade Winery14,500